Sets your Mac's desktop to the current NASA Astronomy Photo of the Day, including explanation text overlaid onto the image.
- Apple Silicon Mac running macOS 13+
- Python 3.9+ If it is missing, StarHop will guide you to install it during setup.
- LaunchControl (required to manage the LaunchAgent and use fdautil for permissions assistance; installation is free — registration/purchase is not required)
Why LaunchControl? macOS privacy settings (Files & Folders / Full Disk Access / Automation) must be explicitly approved by the user. LaunchControl includes
fdautil, which helps surface and guide those approvals for Python/Finder so the wallpaper updates can run unattended. You only need LaunchControl installed for this — you do not need to register or purchase it. Note, to installfdautilapplication, click LaunchControl > Settings... > Utilities > fdautil > Install, then follow the on-screen prompts to do two things: (1) Allow LaunchControl to run in the background and (2) grant fdautil Full Disk Access. These two settings allow StarHop set the wallpaper while the computer is unattended.
- Download the latest DMG from GitHub Releases.
- Open the DMG.
- Double-click StarHop Install.app.
- Enter your NASA API key when prompted.
- If Python 3 is missing, StarHop will guide you to install it first.
- If needed, install LaunchControl. Its free trial is sufficient; you do not need to buy or register it.
- Follow the setup guide that StarHop opens to finish the LaunchControl /
fdautilpermissions.
- Allow prompts for LaunchControl,
bash, or System Events. - If macOS says
"bash" was prevented from modifying apps on your Mac, click Allow. - If macOS shows a Background Items Added notice for LaunchControl, open its options and allow LaunchControl to run in the background.
- If the StarHop job in LaunchControl still does not settle down after you approve the prompts, log out and back in once, then check again.
StarHop currently supports Apple Silicon Macs only. Intel Macs are not supported by the packaged installer.
If StarHop stopped working after a macOS warning about Intel-based apps:
- Install the Apple Silicon version of Python from python.org.
- Re-run StarHop Install.app. The installer will detect the old Intel Python environment and rebuild it automatically.
- Double-click StarHop Uninstall.app.
- Unloads and removes the LaunchAgent (if loaded).
- Removes StarHop's installed files from Application Support.
- Leaves your project folder intact.
- Captioned APOD images can be found at
~/Pictures/StarHop/ - If something doesn't look right, please browse the existing issues or file a new one
- Create a lighter region under textbox to make it more readable in event of a busy background
- Option to turn off captions
- Inspired by Harold Bakker's "Astronomy Picture Of the Day to Desktop" utility -- https://web.archive.org/web/20200221005113/http://www.haroldbakker.com/personal/apod.php